Where Colombian Rebels Once Ruled, Drug Gangs Now Fight for Control

Homicides have risen sharply as trafficking groups fight to control cocaine-growing regions once home to the FARC

By

Juan Forero

July 16, 2018 5:30 am ET

YOKY RIDGE, Colombia—On a hilltop base shielded with sandbags, police sharpshooter Jose Diaz gazed into thick jungle as a fellow commando checked tripwires protecting the stronghold. A radioman listened in on the fighters they were battling.

“They’re always looking for the right moment to attack our base,” said Hector Ocampo, commander of the Colombian detachment in a cocaine-trafficking corridor near Panama.